Four Brands Whose Social Style We Love

Making a social media campaign is more than just writing tweets and editing Instagram photos. The person who is heading up a brand’s social initiative is responsible for all of that plus creating a social voice and aesthetic.

Like any creative task, developing a social media style is easier said than done; to perfect a style requires quite a bit of trial-and-error. For inspiration, here’s a look at four brands whose social media style we love.

Snarkiness and Honesty: Spirit Airlines

Spirit Airlines is known for its cheap fares and snarky corporate voice—and its social presence is no different. The brand is notorious for retweeting its fans bragging about scoring cheap fares, discussing how to avoid their own fees, and sharing humorous corporate news.

You don't march to anyone's drum but your own. You don't conform to trends. And you certainly don't always need to go to the beach for spring break like everyone else. You're a More Go rebel! Fares from $52 one-way. Book by 2/6/18. Additional terms apply. https://t.co/71DGr901nupic.twitter.com/Zv5pFEaDjV

A snarky tone and comedic content works well for a company like Spirit. They own up to the fact that they’re a budget airline, and they don’t try to put on a face that hides that on social. Spirit’s honesty proves to its fans that they are an airline that’s more focused on saving the customer money than offering a first class experience. Its customers embrace that fact, and engage with their tweets in return.

Corporate Values: REI

On REI’s Twitter account, you’ll see a mixture of product promotion and photos of its employees volunteering for a corporate cause. For example, there are tweets that show the company’s employees volunteering at community events and others that discuss the company’s commitment to combating climate change and making working conditions better for its employees.

Today, the administration’s decision to reduce the size of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments takes effect. Prospectors may now begin to stake out mining claims in the lands no longer protected by monument status. https://t.co/wAj53YW5vv

Tweeting your corporate values can put a caring face to your company’s name. Consider taking photos of your company’s next service outing and Tweet and post them to Instagram. For bonus points, tag the charity and retweet each other to synergize off of each other’s social media clout.

Visual Aesthetic: Airbnb

Airbnb’s Instagram page is one for the books. The home sharing platform shares photos of its properties daily, and each one has a wanderlust-inducing aesthetic. Each of their posts are captioned with the location of the property and a short backstory behind it, giving its followers a hub for travel inspiration.

However, if you didn’t see the caption, you wouldn’t guess that this is a corporate Instagram account. Since each photograph has a filter and a “hip” aesthetic, you may mistaken it for an interior design page if you didn’t know better. This seemingly works well for the brand, as each posts has hundreds of comments and likes.

Relatable Pop Culture: Pepsi

Embracing pop culture is a great way to build a social audience, especially for larger, “faceless” brands. Whether it is through simple pop culture jokes or a full blown celebrity sponsorship, pop culture gives your audience something to relate to when they otherwise wouldn’t.

Pepsi does a particularly great job of embracing pop culture on its social pages. Take a look at the brand’s Twitter account, and you’ll see NFL player endorsements and Justin Timberlake cameos. But even if you don’t have Pepsi’s budget, the occasional football joke or pop culture reference can make your content more relatable and, in turn, boost engagement.